"We have agreed to instruct the banks on allowing the Catalan government to make transactions without the control of the Spanish Finance Ministry," Spanish Education Minister Isabel Celaa said after the first meeting of Spain’s new government, chaired by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
Celaa stated that lifting the control was a measure aimed at "political normalization."
The minister also said that Catalonia’s self-determination issue was "beyond any negotiations," concluding that the government was seeking to stabilize the situation relying on the Constitution and dialogue.
On October 1, Catalonia held an independence referendum, during which the vast majority of voters backed secession. Madrid did not recognize the vote and imposed direct rule over the autonomous region, dismissing its government. A number of activists and several ministers of the former Catalan government were arrested, while several others managed to leave Spain.
